Method and apparatus for making identifications



March 14, 1961 c, MCDONALD 2,974,426

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MAKING IDENTIFICATIONS Filed Sept. 23, 1957 2Sheets-Sheet l FIG. 5

INVENTOR. o i fi'fii HUGH c. MDONALD v- 7-8'9-I0 BY 3 & p a

FIG. 4 ATTORNEYS March 14, 1961 MCDONALD METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MAKINGIDENTIFICATIONS Filed Sept. 23, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 D R A mN 0 6 m D 2N C I M C 3 9 I/ ///To m H I L A.Um H E N W 5 7 w :2: rw

9 8 an. L

ATTORN METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MAKING IDENTIFICATIONS Hugh C. Mcponald,Santa Monica, Calif., assignor, by mesne assignments, to TownsendCompany, New Brighton, Pa.

Filed Sept. 23, 1957, Ser. No. 685,497

6 Claims. (CI. 35-26) This invention relates generally to identificationsystems, and more particularly to an improved method and apparatus foreffecting an identification of a person from a relatively large numberof personsby a process of elimination.

Many different identification systems are well known and in wide use atthe present time. Generally, these systems may be grouped in twocategories: first, systems which provide a positive identification of anindividual from a number of individuals; and, second, systems whichenable a reasonably reliable identification to be made of an individualby the process of eliminating large numbers of individuals who do notsatisfy the requirements established by the identification system.

The former systems include finger printing, palm prints, poroscopy andeven mug shots, for example, all based on the premise that nature neverrepeats itself. The primary disadvantage of these systems resides in thenecessity of prior physical contact with the individual in order toobtain the positive identifying data.

The systems in the second category generally proceed with a negativeapproach to the problem of selecting or identifying one individual froma large number of persons. Essentially, the negatve approach consists ofeliminating large numbers of persons who do not satisfy certainrequirements of the identification and is necessarily an outgrowth ofthe fact that no calculated or premeditated prior physical contact hasbeen had with the individual or suspect to be identified.

One well known example of this latter system is that of attempting toreconstruct the suspects face from an oral description. For example,police departments often employ an artist whose primary function is toprepare sketches in accordance with an oral description until a likenessof the suspect is created. The only guide the artist has in such casesis the actual oral description given by a casual observer-who may havehad only fortuitous contact with the suspect. Necessarily, the value ofthis system resides largely on the ability of the artist to create alikeness to the suspect which is sufficient to enable a large number ofother suspects to be eliminated. The likeness which the artist canachieve, in turn, .de pends primarily upon the accuracy with which anoral description can be given to the artist.

In the absence of some sort of scientific or methodical approach whichmay be consistently employed indictating to an artist the facialcharacteristics of the suspect, the process of attempting to create alikeness to a suspect by artistic means will in each and every instanceconstitute an ad hoc operation which is both time consuming andlaborious. Further, there is no way in which the resulting artistsdrawing can be reconstructed by other artists in remote locationswithout actually reproducing exact copies of the artists drawings andphysically transporting or televising them to such locations. In otherwords, without a methodical or scientific approach in the creation of asuspects facial characteristics as described by a casual observer, thereis no consistent manner in which States Patent 2,974,426 Patented Mar.14, .1961

the resulting picture can be coded for subsequent reconstruction.

Bearing the above in mind, it is a primary object of the presentinvention to provide an improved method and apparatus for makingidentifications based primarily on a negative approach wherein largenumbers of persons who may be possible suspects are eliminated, but fromwhich a facial likeness to the suspect can be created in a systematicand methodical manner.

More particularly, it is an object to provide an improved method andapparatus for enabling a consistent and precise building up of a faciallikeness of a suspect solely from an oral description rendered by acasual observer of said suspect, to the end that a reasonably reliableidentification may be made and the created likeness coded for subsequentreproduction.

Still another object is to provide a system of the above type which maybe effectively used in both police work and in intelligence andcounterintelligence operations.

These and many other objects and advantages: of the present inventionare attained primarily by approaching the problem from a negativestandpoint. As stated heretofore, the problem consists of building up afacial picture or likeness of a suspect solely in accordance with anoral description given by a casual observer of the suspect. In makingthe identification, the observer is first questioned about certainsupporting information. For example, such supporting informationincludes the height, weight, age, and clothing of the individual. Fromthese characteristics alone, several hundred different individuals mayimmediately be eliminated as possible suspects.

After all of the supporting information has been obtained, the nextgroup of questions has to do with secondary identifying information.Secondary identifying information consists of the general facialcharacteristics. For example, the general shape of the chin line, thebrows, the eyes, the hairline, the lips, the type of nose, and whetheror not the suspect wore glasses. From information gleaned on any one ofthese characteristics, it is possible again to eliminate a large numberof persons who do not fit any one of the characteristics which theobserver remembers clearly. The third set of questions has to do withprimary identifying information. Primary identifying informationincludes age lines and scars and possibly beards or moustaches. Therecognition of a scar on the individual would immediately eliminatelarge numbers of suspects. The same is true of age lines or beards andmoustaches.

The method of the present invention has to do primarily with theconsistent and accurate obtaining and recording of the above mentionedsecondary and primary identifying information to the end that amethodical system is provided for building up a facial likeness of thesuspect. As mentioned, the obtaining of this secondary and primaryinformation has been done in the past by having an artist create apicture of the suspects face from an oral description by a casualobserver. In accordance with the system of the present invention varioustransparent foils are provided containing line drawings of variousfeatures of a human face. An operator may then overlay differentcombinations of the foils to mechanically create different human faces.The observer of the suspect examines these different faces andeliminates all those faces that do not bear a likeness to the suspectuntil one particular combination of foils remains. By providing eachfoil with a code number, the code numbers of the foils in the particularcombination created may be recorded and transmitted so that the samecomposite face structure can be built up from duplicate foils retainedat a remote location.

A better understanding of this improved method and apparatus foridentification in accordance with the pres- 3 ent invention will be hadby referring to the following detailed description in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view illustrating a kit together withassociated equipment for making identifications in accordance with theinvention; 7

Figure 2 is a plan view of a reference frame useful in carrying out someof the steps in the method of this invention;

Figure 3 illustrates some pages from a catalog employed in the presentinvention;

Figure 4 is an enlarged view of a composite facial structure built up inaccordance with the invention;

Figure 5 shows a grid network useful for determining scar positions inaccordance with a feature of the invention; and

Figure 6 is an enlarged schematic view illustrating in greater detailsteps and equipment employed in carrying out the invention.

In Figure 1, there is illustrated a carrying kit for containing thevarious essential elements that are employed in the present invention.The kit is preferably designed with a compound hinging arrangement forproviding accessible compartments such as fully set forth and describedin the co-pending application of Samuel L. Sela and Cara Crocker, SerialNo. 684,553, filed September 17, 1957, now Patent No. 2,875,010, for aCarrying Kit. As shown, the kit includes two main compartments 10 and 11including working trays 12 and 13 which may be swung down to ahorizontal position about suitable hinges 14 and 15, respectively.Within the compartments 10 and 11 there are provided overlay foilholders 16 and 17 including foil receiving compartments 18 and 19 forreceiving overlay foils or films such as illustrated at 20 in theworking tray 12.

The tray 13 adjacent the tray 12 is provided with an indexing projection21 and a guide projection 22 which are spaced'apart a distance less thanthe side length of the foils and which enables one or more foils to beindexed against the projection and thus secured in a set position suchas illustrated for the foil 23 during the building up of a compositeface in accordance with the invention. The carrying kit is also arrangedto include a catalog 24 shown separated from the kit. The catalog 24would normally be contained in the tray 13 when the kit is folded intoits closed position. With the various foils and catalog together withthe kit construction as described thus far, the method of makingidentifications in accordance with this invention may be carried out.

Before describing in detail the actual step by step procedure which isfollowed through in making up a composite face similar to that of anindividual whose features are orally described, the method stepsinvolved in making up the various foils and catalog will first bedescribed.

Since the fundamental problem consists of attempting to build up afacial likeness of a single individual, the first step is the creationof certain facial features or characteristics. As an example, thesecharacteristics may be listed and identified as follows:

Code: Characteristic A Age line. S Scars. G Glasses. H Hair lines. MBeards and moustaches.

E Eyes. B Brows.

L Lips. N Noses. C Chin lines. T Head gear.

Designating each of these various characteristics as groups, the firstproblem was the preparation of a series of foils illustrating theparticular characteristic of the group in different expressions.Further, the foils had to be prepared in a manner to register properlywhen in overlying position. To this end, thousands of ditferent faceswere studied from a head on view from which measurements were madewhereby the average position or relative locations of facial featureswith respect to each other could be constructed. From these positions areference frame 25 was created such as illustrated in Figure 2, anddefinite reference points were established on the frame. For example,the frame was first secured in a set position as by locating pins 26,27, and 28 and first and second reference points 29 and 30 wereconstructed which denoted the average position of the temples. The nextreference points 31 and 32 denoted the average position of the pupils ofthe eyes. The next reference point 33 was established at the averageposition of the tip of the nose. Another reference point 34 wasestablished at the average position of the center of the lips andfinally a reference point 35 was positioned at the average position ofthe end of the chin.

Having established these fixed reference points, various features suchas the nose, lips, and chin lines coded as N, L and C were drawn by anartist on the reference frame and suitably extended or shortened asnecessary such that they would terminate on these definite referencepoints. For example, all of the various variations in chin lines had toterminateon the lower reference point 35 at their lower ends and at thetemple points 29 and 30 at their upper ends. Similarly, all of the nosesconstructed had to terminate in tips on the reference point 33 while allof the various different eye expressions had to have the pupils fall onthe reference points 31 and 32. Photographs were then taken of eachindividually drawn characteristic to provide the same on transparentfilms or foils. By this arrangement, overlaying of various foils, forexample, a single chin line drawing with a nose drawing, could beaccomplished with assurance of proper registration. The slight extensionor shortening of the specific features in order to register with thereference points had to be effected within an acceptable margin of errorso that the fundamental expression was not changed.

After all the diflEerent various types of expressions were photographedto provide a series of foils, each of these series of foils was thengiven a code number and divided into groups designated by theaforementioned code letters and filed in the various correspondinglylettered group compartments in the carrying kit illustrated in Figure 1.Corresponding pictures of these various foils are provided in thecatalog 24 such as illustrated on the left hand page in Figure 3 of thecatalog for the lip group L. On this page, it will be noted that variousdifferent types of lips are shown from thin lips to relatively thicklips. In the right hand page of the catalog in Figure 3, there are shownpictures of various types of noses, each of these pictures having acorresponding foil filed in the nose group compartment N of the kit.Note that each individual type of lips and nose are given code numbers.

The foils themselves containing each of the individual characteristics,such as the top foil 37 in Figure 4, are provided with notches 38 ontheir upper left hand margin. These notches enabled various foils to bevertically displaced from each other to provide an elongated facialexpression whereby a greater likeness could possibly be built up duringthe identifying process. As indicated in Figure 1, the notches 38 arearranged to be received in the indexing projection 21 and the left handlower margin 39 of the foil is arranged to rest against the guideprojection 22.

As an additional feature to the indentifying data contained on theindividual foils in each of the groups, various differently shaped scarswere created and positioned on the composite face by a simpleco-ordinate system such as illustrated in Figure 5. For example, thereis shown a grid 40 having horizontal and vertical cross lines upon whichmay be located the position of a scar such as indicated by the filled insquares. Thus, from .an oral description of the approximate location ofa scar on a persons face, the corresponding co-ordinates can be workedout on the grid 40 and a code number indicating the location of the'scarmay be provided.

In the actual making of the identification, the kit of Figure 1 is firstopened up into a working position'as illustrated. The observer givingthe oral description is then interrogated as to supporting information,secondary identifying information, and primary identifying information.The supporting information such as the general height, weight, and ageof the person together with any other supporting data such as twitches,limps,

. and the general demeanor gives the experienced user of theidentification system an intuitive feeling as to the general characterof the individuals face. The observer is then questioned as to certainfundamental secondary identifying data; for example, the type of chinline, heavy, square, etc.; the type of lips, thick or thin; type ofnose, and so forth.

For example, assume that the building up of the composite face of thesuspect is begun by a description of the lips of the suspect. In thisevent, the operator of the system will open up the catalog 24illustrating the pictures of the various foils on lips such as on theleft hand page of the catalog of Figure 3. The casual observer is thenasked to select one of the pictures of the various different types oflips. For example, assuming that the observer picked the catalog pictureL06, the operator then reaches in the compartment L of the kit in Figure1 and selects the foil coded 06. This foil which contains only a pictureof the persons lips as illustrated in the catalog is then placed in theleft hand tray 13 with preferably the center notch 38 in the indexingprojection 21 and the left hand edge 39 of the foil against the guidingprojection.

The observer may then be questioned as to the type of nose of thesuspect and from the catalog, he selects the one picture bearing alikeness to the suspects nose. For example, assume the observer selectedthe catalog picture N03 for the nose. As in thecase of the lips, theoperator then selects the correspondingly coded foil from the Ncompartment and places it over the lip foil in the tray 13. If theobserver indicates that the suspect had a long upper lip, the lowestindexing notch of the nose foil is inserted in the indexing projection21 whereby a relatively large space between the lips and nose willappear in the overlay indicating a long upper lip. Alternatively, if thenose is relatively close to the lips indicating a short upper lip, thenose foil may be repositioned with the top notch in the indexingprojection 21 whereby the appearance of the individual is that of onehaving a very short upper lip. Y

The identical process is then repeated for the various other groups offacial characteristics such as the chin line, eyes, brows, hair line,age lines, etc., the observer in each instance selecting the particularexpression in each of the groups which most closely resembles that ofthe suspect. Actually, the observer in reality makes his selection byeliminating those facial expressions which lea-st resemble thecorresponding characteristic of the suspect until only one picture andcorresponding foil in each group remains.

After all of the selections have been made and the respective foilsarranged in overlying relationship, there results a composite face andfacial expression which most closely resembles the suspects face. Thevarious code numbers on each of the foils making up the composite facemay then be recorded.

Figure 4 illustrates such a composite face bearing the code numberA02N03B05C01E05L06-- H12D04. Also, the position and shape of a scar on te su p t as d erm n d by th grid c rlinat s i Figure 5 is coded asmeaning that the squares designated by the co-ordinates (5, 7), (5, 8),(6, 9), (7, l0) are to be filled in.

The entire code may be transmitted by radio or other means to a remotelocation where an operator provided with a similar kit and transparentfoils may reconstruct the face.

The foregoing procedure will be better understood by referring to Figure6 which illustrates by way of example a plurality of groups oftransparentfoils, E, N, and L as would be contained in the E, N, and Lfile slots in the kit of Figure 1. Each group relates to a separatefeature of the human face and contains a set of foils illustratingsolely such feature in various different shapes and expressions. Forexample, in Figure 6 the group B relates to eyes, the group N to noses,and the group L to lips.

In the case of the set of foils making up the group B, various eyes areshown with successively different shapes and expressions, the onlycommon feature being the.

spatial location of the pupils which corresponds to the reference pointsfor the pupils established when initially making up the foils. Each foilin turn is provided with a code number as shown on the bottom at E-03,E-04, E-OS, E-06, and so forth. Similarly, the sets of foils making upthe nose and lip groups are coded as shown.

In Figure 6, the separate foils in each group are illustrated as offsetfrom each other to expose the code numbers.

In carrying out the identification procedure as described heretofore, asingle foil from each group is selected which most nearly represents thecorresponding feature of the individual. Thus, as indicated by thedashed lines 41, 42, and 43, the foils coded E-OS, M-OS, and L-09 may beselected as most nearly corresponding to the persons eyes, nose, andlips respectively and placed in overlying positions in the tray 13.Proper relationship is assured since the various reference pointsemployed in making up the foils as described will insure properregistration of the terminal points of the features so that a compositeface will result.

The entire process of creating a likeness to a suspects face inaccordance with the foregoing method may be relatively rapidly executedand as a consequence of portability of the kit, may be accomplished atthe spot locations when a suspects description is freshest in the memoryof observers and witnesses.

Modifications falling within the scope and spirit of the presentinvention will occur to those skilled in the art. The identificationsystem is, therefore, not to be thought of as limited to the specificembodiment set forth for illustrative purposes.

What is claimed is:

l. A method of making identifications comprising the steps of:constructing reference points indicating the average relative locationsof facial features from measurements of the relative locations offeatures in a plurality of different faces; changing the outline ofspecific corresponding features of said plurality of different faces toregister with said reference points within an acceptable margin oferror; reproducing each of said specific corresponding features ontransparent foils as a medium therefor; assigning an individual codesymbol to each of said transparent foils; and cataloging said foils,whereby overlaying of various foils of said features in accordance witha description of a persons face to be identified provides a compositefacial expression bearing a likeness to said persons face, thesuccessive designation of each code symbol on said various foilsconstituting an overall identifying code for said particular compositefacial expression.

2. The method of claim 1, in which said fixed reference pointsdesignate-terminal points for the temples, pupils of the eyes, tip ofthe nose, center of the lips, and end of the chin.

3. The method of claim 1, in which said specific features include: agelines, hair lines, eyes, eyebrows, noses, lips, and chins.

4. The method of claim 1, including the step of providing a grid foilhaving rectangular coordinates with respect to said reference pointswhereby the locations of scars may be determined on said grid andproperly simulated on said composite facial expression, and assigned acode symbol including the rectangular coordinates of the position ofsaid scar on said grid.

5. An apparatus for constructing a facial likeness of an individual,comprising: a plurality of groups of transparent foils, each grouprelating to a separate feature of the human face and containing a set offoils illustrating said feature in various dilferent shapes andexpressions, each foil in each set of said groups including referencepoints which are common to each feature in said dilferent shapes andexpressions in said set so that consistent positioning of the variousfeatures relative to each other when foils from different groups areplaced in overlying relationship is realized, each transparent foil alsoincluding an individual code symbol, whereby overlaying of various foilsfrom said groups illustrating features in accordance with a descriptionof a persons face to be identified provides a composite facialexpression bearing a likeness to said persons face, the successivedesignation of each code symbol on the various foils constituting anoverall identifying code for said particular composite facialexpression.

6. An apparatus according to claim 5, in which the features to whichsaid plurality of groups relate include: age lines, scars, glasses, hairlines, beards and mustaches, eyes, brows, lips, noses, chin lines, andhead gear.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

